There are boxes everywhere.
Some full of things to take.
Some filled with things to give away.
Some empty - waiting to be filled.
There’s nothing like moving to make one reevaluate what is really important. The past week I have been inundated with an internal dialogue of questions - Do we really need this? Why do I even have this? Where did this even come from? Will this fit our new lifestyle? Is this worth transporting? What if I regret getting rid of this ? What do we really need? Will my children find out I got rid of this and resent me and never come home for Christmas when they get old ?? J/k - kind of. But seriously, I am mental fatigued from all the micro-decisions that go into purging and moving.
But I am also grateful because this is the push my husband and I needed to simplify. And I think that as first-world as my problem of “too much stuff” is - there is a universal spiritual principle behind this whole experience.
What is really important? What have I been holding onto mentally that I need to let go off? What resentments are weighing me down? Do I really want to carry old hurts and wounds with me? What sins have I picked up and allowed to clutter my life until I have lost sight of what is really important? What activities, hobbies, habits have I collected - and even if they are good, are they pushing me towards Christ and others or away from them?
What do I need to lay aside so I can run and run well this race my Savior has set before me? (Hebrews 12:1)
And that’s all I have for today - because another thing I have realized lately is that writing is one of those things I want to/need to hold onto and oh how quickly I let all.the.things. crowd it out of my life.
But not today. Today I have put writing in the “to keep” box, and though it’s not perfect or nearly as beautiful or fleshed out as I would have liked - I offer it back up to the One who gave me the desire to write and pray that it blesses one of you.
Keep going, Amanda! We love your ability to articulate what we experience in life. I’m ahead of your season in life but you have refreshed my memory of how I navigated those decisions in the past and have reminded me how I still need to zoom in to what is important today. God bless
Boy do I identify with your post, Amanda. I’ve made the mistake of filling every drawer and closet in every house we’ve ever owned all in the guise of “being organized”! Why did I think I had to organize so much “stuff”?!
I spent the last 3 years since buying our home in Florida doing exactly what you’re describing minus “kid stuff”! It was all “our stuff”! I tried giving away furniture and household items after Hurricane Ian but people had lost their homes and didn’t have any home to put them in. Bargain Basket got most of what I never really had needed!
I think I’ll have to purge every year. It’s a good feeling!
Love you